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Join us at 7:30pm Friday for a live blog of the clash of this year’s favourites, Melbourne Storm, versus last year’s NRL winners St George Dragons, at AAMI Park.
St George are trying to pick up the pieces of their season as the Melbourne Storm are trying to finish theirs on a large unbeaten run.
St George haven’t won a game since their Round 19 clash with the Sharks, who have hardly been covering themselves in glory this season. Apart from a pretty good display against the Tigers in Round 22, they’ve looked sluggish in attack and defensive commitment, and their early season goal-line defence has been found wanting.
Everything from Wayne Bennett’s impending departure, the loss of hard men Neville Costigan and Jeremy Smith, State of Origin hangover has been blamed – and some believe that the grand final win last year has failed to help them drop the ‘choker’ mentality.
They can take comfort from the fact that they are good enough to beat any side on their day; the problem is they have to start doing it again – and the challenge this week is a huge one.
Melbourne have looked nothing short of rampant this season, and each week they seem to be looking better and better. The club may have lost a lot of talent from their roster, but with a well drilled system that players can move into and out of with ease and efficiency means they look just as devastating.
Their clinical approach to attack, and their ability to slow the play the ball down will mean that the Dragons ability in defence, earlier this year being held up against the great Manly side of the 90s, will have to be at their best.
Head-to-head
Things are looking good for the home side Melbourne, with the last away team in this fixture being the Storm at WIN Jubilee back in the 2007 season, en route to the grand final win that year.
Melbourne have won the last fixture, and the Red V the one before, but this one looks like being decided on form, rather than any home ground advantage.
Keys to the game
With Jamie Soward’s game under scrutiny, and the Storm without key halfback Cooper Cronk, both sides will be looking to these men to bring their A-game.
Soward has been accused in recent weeks of ‘disappearing’, a very unfair description of the NSW pivot in my opinion, as his forwards have failed to give him any momentum in attack, which means his chances at making something happen are something of a rarity, even more so off the back off rolling play. He is also having to deal with a niggling back injury which has hampered his movement.
Gareth Widdop is looking like lining up at halfback this week in Cronks absence. After helping steer the ship during Melbourne’s Origin period magnificently, he can take a slightly more backseat role in this game to inspirational leader Cameron Smith.
Smith is still hamstrung by operating out of dummy half, so Widdop will need to make sure his players are set on his outside for Melbourne to put some points on the Dragons backline, who despite recent weeks are a terrific defensive outfit.
Sis Waqa is in for Justin O’Neill on the wing, who has been dropped due to injury. Beau Champion has been promoted from the bench to fill in for Maurice Blair, whose shift to five-eighth allows Gareth Widdop to fill Cooper Cronk’s absense at halfback. Atelea Vea is out, with his and Champion’s bench spots being filled by Rory Kostjasyn and Troy Thompson.
AAMI Park: Kick-off at 7:35pm Friday 19th August.
Odds:
Melbourne are at $1.70 to beat St George at $2.15.
My tip:
It has to be the Storm. Melbourne have looked nothing short of Premiers-in-waiting over the last few weeks, destroying quality and less so opposition with aplomb. St George need to return to the form at the start of the season if they are to have any hope.
If they dish up what they did last week against the Roosters, Melbourne are going to have a field day. But whether it’s a change in mentality, or an extra week to help get over some niggling injuries, St George have to do what they do so well this week.
Melbourne by 12.
Join me at 7pm for late mail and pre-match banter followed by the match.
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